Construction has begun on the new home of Ballarat Hospice which will enable the service to continue to grow as demand booms for end-of-life palliative care.
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An emotional regional development minister Jaala Pulford turned the first sod on the Sturt Street site, describing the project as “a labor of love” after her own experience with Ballarat Hospice.
Her 13-year-old daughter Sinead died at home after a short battle with incurable cancer in December 2014, with Ballarat Hospice supporting the family in the final weeks of Sinead’s life.
“The care we received for my daughter Sinead was extraordinary,” Ms Pulford said.
”When we were discharged from the Royal Children’s Hospital we felt completely ill-equipped to deal with a very very sick child with all the complex care and needs that she had. Over the period of seven or eight weeks from when we were discharged from hospital until her death, the things that they taught us to do, the skills we learned, meant we could care for Sinead at home.
“With the care of her parents, family and friends and care at Ballarat Hospice it gave her a choice that lots of people in the community would love to have.”
Ballarat Hospice currently operates from the back of a small church and is at capacity with the number of patients supported more than quadrupling over the past 10 years.
The new purpose-built facility in Alfredton has been funded with $6.2 million of state government money and $1.5 million contributed from the Ballarat community.
“This investment is more than just bricks and mortar – it will mean more patients can get quality, personal and compassionate end of life care, closer to home,” Ms Pulford said.
The new hospice will be a palliative care hub with counselling rooms, an education suite, e-health technology, secure reception and equipment storage and better amenities for families and visitors. Construction is expected to be complete late next year.
“The service has grown exponentially over the past three to four years, and it’s double the size it was four years ago,” said Ballarat Hospice board of management chair Geoff Russell.
“That says we are required in the community. People want to come to us so that gives us great acknowledgement that we are providing a service that people want at that critical time in their life.”
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